The #EduElection: Owning the Debate through Communications and Social Media

Vinocur, Julian

Voices in Urban Education, n39 p33-37 2014

For nearly a decade, New York City education groups organizing to improve education under Bloomberg could regularly be found protesting on the steps of City Hall. Before the 2013 mayoral race, a typical education protest would--at its best--earn media coverage from a couple of outlets. The fact that parents, students, and teachers rally for more school funding, or put forward solutions to fix struggling schools, is just not an inherent draw to reporters. But the 2013 mayoral race presented public education advocates with a season of high media attraction. The campaign to take education in a new direction succeeded by maximizing the newsworthiness of this pivotal moment and positioning those most affected in the spotlight as the owners of the debate. On election night, Mayor Bill de Blasio won with a clear mandate to take public education in a new direction. Throughout his campaign, he ran on reversing many of the failures of the last twelve years and committed to the community's vision of success.